Instant Reaction: court declares Zambry as lawful MB
What people are generally feeling is they are fed up with the Perak situation, and this is not about taking BN or PR's side but they are just really fed up and want to see the situation resolved through fresh elections.
Written by Lam Jian Wyn, The Edge
Denison Jayasooria, political analyst at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
This incident has created a lot of political tension and doubt about the monarchy, courts, and the role of the executive, and it has also resulted in a divided people who support either Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir or Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin. The implications are several – for the supporters, Perakians, the judiciary and the political wishes of the people. The state government should be careful to not allow Perak to become a failed state.
While Zambry may have won a tactical legal victory, it is not perceived well by Malaysians in general. In the long term, some political settlement must be reached. A victory for BN is not the end of the continuing saga – the state won’t rest because the state government will be caught in a legal battle which will go up to the Federal court.
Barisan Nasional will have an uphill task convincing the voters as they are losing the hearts of the people. Conversely, Pakatan Rakyat can see this as a situation where they have won the hearts and minds of the people despite losing the legal battle.
Dr. Marzuki Mohamad, Associate Professor for Political Science at International Islamic University
Now is the time to move forward and let the BN government, and Zambry, who have been declared the legal government in Perak, to be given a chance to continue serving the people. Everybody should allow him to lead the state in the interest of the people, and let the legal proceedings take place. Perakians should be brave enough to accept this decision. Besides, it is a rule of the political game where if you have a dispute, you settle it in court. Nizar has every right to appeal to the Federal court if he wants to, and we should allow the legal process to run its course.
Ben Suffian, Programme Director at Merdeka Centre
What people are generally feeling is they are fed up with the Perak situation, and this is not about taking BN or PR's side but they are just really fed up and want to see the situation resolved through fresh elections. People are worried – civil servants don't know what to do, business people are concerned about the businesses they are entering with the state government and are concerned about the consequences of policies while regular people just do not know who to turn to. The court cases are also not generating confidence in the judiciary system as they discourage the public from believing in a democracy. PR is winning more supporters from the disaffected and undecided voters and this could undermine all the positive messages from the prime minister.
